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A devastated daughter has described her heartache at the death of her father who was killed in a hit and run just yards from his home.
Bill Roache, 72, was killed when he was knocked down while crossing the road in Chatham after spending the evening with friends in the pub on Monday.
Describing her father as a man with "a great sense of humour who loved life", daughter Pamela Singh said the family had been left heartbroken and hoped justice would prevail.
"He was funny, he loved life and he loved a pint. He carried on living his life and he loved us.
"We were planning on having a trip over after all the Covid stuff has stopped. We were all going to go on holiday.
"He was my dad and I loved him, no matter what."
Bill, who was born in Dublin on September 13, 1947, moved to Chatham in 1991 after working as an errand boy at Spitalfields market in London and the Arts Council of Great Britain before retiring in his late 50s.
The grandfather-of-two of Otway Street used to run the Chatham Working Men's Club and was also a regular at the Rochester branch and the Palmerston Road Club.
Pamela, who lives in Ireland, said her father remained "fiercely independent" despite developing epilepsy after suffering two strokes which meant he had to walk with a stick.
"I'm devastated - absolutely heartbroken," she said. "We expected him to die from the strokes, but we didn't expect him to be killed.
"He survived those strokes and that's how we expected him to go. Not this way.
"He was always out and about. He was in the pub that night with his mates - he wasn't old in his way of thinking.
"If he wasn't home I always knew where I could find him - in one of his favourite haunts. He did have a lot of friends."
Bill moved to England with his mother when he was about 12 years old and would frequently visit his homeland to see family - he had three sisters, three brothers and three children.
He was married three times and remained close friends with Pamela's mum, Teresa, Bill's first wife, who he spoke to less than an hour before he died.
"He asked her to go to Moscow - they've done that before as friends," Pamela said. "It's a bit of a strange family situation but my mum and dad were friends.
"They were childhood sweethearts and they got married when they were 20.
"Everybody is devastated. My mum's devastated, Lorraine (Bill's third wife) is devastated."
Pamela, 52, recalled the last time she spoke to her father saying how she was going to study accounting at university.
"He was really happy and really proud," said Pamela. "I only passed my driving test a couple of years ago and I had him out in the car when he came over to visit my mum. He was really proud then too."
His daughter says the family hope to get justice and want to see the driver convicted of his death.
"They've done a terrible thing, and shouldn't hide behind it," Pamela added. "We just have to hope that justice will prevail.
"If you're a decent person and have hit someone you're going to stop.
"The damage to the car would have been astronomical. My dad was about 5ft 10ins and wasn't a small man."
A woman in her 20s from Rochester has been released on bail while police investigate the incident, which took place in New Road at the junction with Otway Terrace at 10.50pm on August 10.
She was arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving but no charges have yet been made by police.
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